We all know someone who, when it comes to politics, simply can’t let it go. Whatever it is – how you vote compared to them, some politician you like that they hate, a single issue on which you disagree – they simply can’t get past the difference. The obsession has ruined friendships and families. The thing that is new in year of the pandemic of Trump Derangement Syndrome is it’s ruining businesses now, too.
I’d never heard of Expensify before this weekend. It’s apparently a company that helps people and companies keep track of their expenses. It’s likely not a factor in your life, but it could be a factor in your business. Now it will likely not be a factor ever for millions of Americans because the founder and CEO, a guy named David Barrett, decided to call anyone who isn’t voting for Joe Biden an idiot.
Apparently, Barrett just couldn’t help himself, he couldn’t just let it go, and emailed every customer the company had, all 10 million of them, to tell them to vote for Biden. A member of the “tolerant” left could not tolerate someone voting differently, someone thinking differently.
Barrett’s email was a cross between a diary entry from a demented loner and a cry for help. “If you are a US citizen, anything less than a vote for Biden is a vote against democracy,” he started.
Like a child raised only on MSNBC, Barrett rambles on about “democracy” and how Donald Trump is a threat to it. How, like MSNBC, he doesn’t really say. He’s a believer, believers in conspiracies don’t need proof or facts, or even a grip on reality.
On whether the company should remain neutral, Barrett spews paranoia. “Expensify depends on a functioning society and economy; not many expense reports get filed during a civil war. As CEO of this business, it’s my job to plot a course through any storm -- and all evidence suggests that another 4 (or as Trump has hinted -- 8, or more?) years of Trump leadership will damage our democracy to such an extent, I’m obligated on behalf of shareholders to take any action I can to avoid it. I am confident our democracy (and Expensify) can survive a Biden presidency. I can’t say the same about Trump. It’s truly as simple as that,” he writes.
Expensify took in $108 million in 2018, but I’d hate to be one of his investors at this point. The compulsion to slam half the country, half his customers, for “thinking wrong” is the suicide bombing of the business world.
That’s what the left is - the equivalent of a terrorist organization. They demand conformity, they demand obedience. Deviate from what is acceptable and you are the enemy. And nothing is beyond the pale when it comes to defeating or destroying the enemy.
There is no corresponding purity demand on the right, Republicans fight with each other almost more often than they do with Democrats. If backstabbing were an Olympic event, Republicans would sweep the medals. A brilliant, unquestioningly qualified nominee for the Supreme Court is going to be confirmed this week and not a single Democrat will break ranks with their party to vote for her, two Republicans will vote against her.
Expensify isn’t the only company to cram politics into its business, it’s become a trend. And that trend will continue if they win. The mantra will morph from “you should do this” to “you must do this or we want nothing to do with you.” The “bake me a cake as fast as you can” crowd will make it clear they wish for our submission or else.
“So one final plea,” Barrett closed his email. “As a fellow citizen, I fully support and respect your Constitutional right to disagree -- and as an avid supporter of democracy, I value that disagreement. Constructive, well-informed debate (hopefully using the most accurate, least biased news source available) is what makes this nation so exceptional.” He linked that to a left-wing “analysis” site on media bias that ranked the Huffington Post as more honest and less extreme than Fox, and Buzzfeed and Vox among the “most reliable.”
That’s what we’re up against, insanity with a healthy budget and a deputized cadre of extremists willing to destroy themselves to win.
Like I said, I didn’t know Expensify before this weekend, but everyone knows it now. If you use their services, do you still want to? For a lot of their customers, the answer turns out to be a resounding “no.”
Derek Hunter is the host of a free daily podcast (subscribe!), host of a daily radio show on WCBM in Maryland, and author of the book, Outrage, INC., which exposes how liberals use fear and hatred to manipulate the masses. Follow him on Twitter at @DerekAHunter.